How can an individual’s perspective alter their behavior, and affect those around them? Perspective is a person's viewpoint, which causes them to react a certain way. As a person journeys through life, they encounter many situations that shift their perspective. Everyone has experienced a conflict with another person. The two individuals work towards achieving an agreement by looking at the others’ side to the story. This allows for an individual to view the others’ perspective and modify their point of view. Throughout the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, author Harper Lee illustrates through the use of characters how Jem, Walter and Sout’s perspectives change regarding specific events. When a naive individual observes a specific event, their perspective alters, allowing them to gain a more complex understanding of the situation. At first, …show more content…
Throughout the trial, Jem’s understanding strengthens and it becomes clear to him that “you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view-until you climb into his skin and walk around in it”(Lee 30). When Atticus takes on a case, choosing to defend a black man in a trial, Jem is significantly impacted when the jury delivers the verdict that Tom is guilty after Atticus does everything in his power to prove that Mr. Robinson is innocent. Jem puts himself in Tom Robinson’s shoes, allowing him to see the trial from another point of view; the racist side of the story. He is shaken by the outcome of the trial, making “His hands white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each ‘guilty’ was a separate stab between
Lee uses Scout and Jem’s tumultuous childhood experiences to... has had many trials through her life, and on was in fact a trail of Tom Robinson, a black man accused in raping Mayella Ewell, one of the daughters of Bob Ewell, the town’s idler. Atticus, the children’s father, was defending Tom Robinson, and the case seemed to be in favor of him, all the way to the point of Jem stating, “He’s not leaning, Reverend, but don’t fret, we’ve won it..Don’t see how any jury could convict on what we heard-”(Lee 176). Jem is very confident in his father’s argument, and believes that the case will lean to Tom,
Atticus a lawyer in Maycom County defends a black man. By said that a white woman accuses that a black man rapped her. Atticus’s children are in confusion and constantly ask their father about his case. Atticus said”….If I didn’t I couldn’t hold up my head in town, I couldn’t represent this county in the legislature. (75). Clearly we can see that he has lots of respect to this county and for blacks. Atticus wants his children to ignore what everybody thinks on him about defending a negro. During a conversation between Jem and Atticus, tells jem,” As you grow older, you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, whenever a white man does that to a black man, that white man is a trash.” (223). At the court Atticus is sure that he will lose but want to make a statement to this racist society. He wants this county treat black people just how they treat white people. Atticus states in the court,”…..you know the truth….some Negroes lie some Negroes are immoral….There is no person in this courtroom who ha...
During the court scene a lot of difficult things happen and it becomes a very hard case for Atticus to solve and explain. Jem and Scout are both very upset about Tom Robinson being accused of the things he didn’t do. Atticus begins to tell Jem that it’s going to be okay and that he wants Jem to not worry about what the outcome is. Atticus is trying to teach him that even if the case doesn’t go the way they wanted and the way that it was supposed to go, that they still did the right thing and that they would keep trying to help Tom Robinson in any way they could. This is what Atticus tells Jem, “Link, that boy might go to the chair, but he’s not going till the truth’s told.” “Atticus’s voice was even. And you know what the truth
In the courtroom that night it is revealed that the alleged crimes of Tom Robinson, a decent Negro man, most likely did not happen. As Atticus says in his closing argument, "The state has not produced one iota of medical evidence to the effect that the crime Tom Robinson is charged with ever took place. It has relied instead upon the testimony of two witnesses whose evidence has not only been called into serious question on cross-examination, but has been flatly contradicted by the defendant. The defendant is not guilty, but somebody in this courtroom is” (Lee 271). Showing the clear innocence of Tom Robinson due to lack of evidence, Scout thinks that the white jury will do the right thing only to find out that they still, unfairly, accuse him of being guilty. Scout and her brother, Jem, get very upset when they hear the verdict, however, it allows them both to learn the lesson that the county is unfair towards anyone who is not white. The county demonstrates this evil racism due to the social divisions in Maycomb between the whites and the blacks and because the whites see the blacks as unworthy of rights and freedoms. It was not just the trial itself that displayed evil in the world, but the comments and arguments surrounding the case did
Seeing things in other people perspective is crucial to keep a serene relationship between people. For instance, failure to consider another person’s point of view is one of the main causes of prejudice in the world. Prejudiced people judge preconceive opinions that are not based on reason or actual experience. For example, a prejudiced person might look at a homeless person with disdain and say, “Get a job or get lost!” From the prejudiced persons point of view, the homeless person is unwilling to work, lazy, and
First, the trial of Tom Robinson is an eye-opening experience for Jem and Scout; there they discover hatred, child abuse, and lying. Seeing pure hate is new and strange for Jem and Scout. They know that prejudice does exist, but listening to and watching Bob Ewell during the trial is astounding to them because Bob Ewell abhors all blacks, especially Tom Robinson. Bob’s daughter, Mayella, makes an advance on Tom, which is absolutely unspeakable and shameful at that time. In addition, Bob Ewell’s hate grows (especially for Atticus) because after the trial his reputation and respect is ruined, even though he does not have a high degree of integrity to begin with. Also, through the
Tom Robinson was found guilty and the children realize the evils of human nature. Jem loses faith in humanity and justice when he discovers the racism in the trail. Atticus teaches Jem that he needs to understand that people can be evil but to never lose faith in humanity. The children learn this moral through the trial and through
Atticus shows great compassion and tolerance when he stands up for the Negroes. He stands up and represents Tom Robinson because he believes that everyone should be treated equally in the court of law. He knows that because Tom was a Negro there would be a slim chance of winning. That fact never discouraged him though because he says that the main reason he is representing Tom is because, ' if I didn't I couldn't hold up my head in town, I couldn't represent this county in the legislature'; (75). He recited a speech, which clearly states that Tom Robinson is not guilty. In that speech he says, 'our courts have their faults, as does any human institution, but in this courts are the great levelers, and in our courts all men are created equal'; (205). He believed that prejudice and stereotyping is wrong and he tries to teach these morals to Scout and Jem.
Tom Robinson, the defendant, was accused of raping and beating a local, white girl. Although Atticus is quite positive his client didn 't commit the disturbing crime, Tom 's race and history are not in his favor. Nevertheless, Atticus proceeds with the trial and skillfully uses persuasive techniques, such as diction, imagery, and tone, and rhetorical appeals to fight for what he presumes is morally right.
The verdict of the trial forces Jem to think about how justice in the society of Maycomb is linked to social inequalities. When the children leave the courthouse after the trial, Scout reflects on Jem’s reaction to the outcome of the trial. Scout narrates, “It was Jem's turn to cry. His face was streaked with angry tears as we made our way through the cheerful crowd. 'It ain't right,' he muttered, all the way to the corner of the square where we found Atticus waiting” (212). The author specifically uses the words “streaked with tears” to show how devastated Jem is about the verdict of the trial. He doesn’t understand why Tom is convicted even though he is innocent which shows that Jem is exposed for the first time to the injustice of the society
...upset because he knew that the verdict was wrong. It was especially upsetting because Atticus was so invested in the case and he argued for Tom because it was the right thing to do, no matter what people said about it. Jem is the voice of innocence in the novel.
Also Jem was affected negatively by racism by a loss of his innocence. Jem states while he walks out of the courtroom “ It ain't right Atticus”(Lee 285). Jem now knows that Tom should have won but he didn’t just because he is a black man facing a white woman. When Jem angrily said, “ I never wanna hear about that court case again, ever, ever you hear me?”(Lee 331). This quote proves that Jem has lost his innocence because he knows that Tom Robinson should have had a fair trial but he didn't so he doesn't want to hear about it.
If one considers the points of view of others, they can understand situations and others more effectively. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, there are characters who strive to walk in other people’s shoes. Atticus demonstrates his philosophy of life by thinking about situations from other people’s perspectives, which later influences Jem and Scout to do the same.
Perspective makes up the cells of focus; when our thoughts become memories we choose the facts of what was seen and create the story. The facts we chose are all based on our perspective. From my point of view, I chose to only see the lady pushing me. If we change our perspective, we can change the way we
Tom Robinson’s trial, and in fact his entire life, was badly affected by racism. It is truly a testament to the corruption of society when a person who has earned a bad reputation is held in higher esteem than a person who was born with it, as is the case with Bob Ewell and Tom Robinson. Even though Tom was obviously honest in his testament, the jury sided with Bob Ewell because he was white. They made this decision despite the fact that the Ewell family was widely known to be a worthless part of society. Jem, not being racially prejudiced, could not understand this mentality. As Atticus pointed out, “If you (Jem) had been on the jury, son, and eleven other boys like you, Tom would be a free man.”